Dear Woodward Families, 

As we move into May, it’s time to prepare for important state testing. Our students will be taking the Washington State Assessments in Language Arts and Math (Smarter Balances Assessment, or SBA), as well as the Washington Comprehensive Assessment of Science (WCAS). 

We appreciate your support in helping students feel ready and confident on testing days. Please take note of the following dates and details: 

May 5 & 6: SBA - Language Arts (7th and 8th grades)

May 12 & 13: SBA - Math (7th and 8th grades)

May 19 & 20: WCAS - Science (8th grade only)

We will provide a set of wired headphones for every student. Students will not be able to use their own wireless headphones, though they may use personal headphones that plug into the Chromebook. 

Please contact us if you have any questions. 

Sincerely,

Jeannie Donoghue

WMS Principal

jdonoghue@bisd303.org 

What I'm reading now: Hamnet by Maggie O'Farrell

For the month of April, Woodward Middle School is embarking on a month-long social emotional learning (SEL) series of lessons and events called Woodward’s Values in Action Deep Dive: A Reflective Values in Action Journey. Values in Action (VIA) is defined as activities that promote the learning and application of values. Please see a more in-depth description from Jeannie Donoghue’s From the Principal segment from the April 15th Wildcat Newsletter. Thank you to Woodward PTO for supporting the Woodward Deep Dive.

Over the next two weeks we will have a variety of lessons and special events. A few of these events are highlighted below. Check next week's newsletter for even more information.

 As part of our Deep Dive with a focus on refugees in our community, we are launching a school-wide service project to put our Woodward values into action. From April 21st - May 1st, Woodward is partnering with Bainbridge Island Rotary Club and the Ukrainian Association of Washington to support Ukrainian refugees in the Seattle area by collecting NEW socks for children, adolescents and adults. It’s a small gift that makes a huge difference for families starting over. 

Students who would like to participate can turn in new socks to their 4th period period teacher anytime between April 21 and May 1. 

To promote our all school service project, Woodward Leadership Class and Betsy Carlson’s 4th period class have organized a Socks and Sandals Day this Friday, April 24th!

We are thrilled to welcome artist and illustrator, Edel Rodriguez who will share his refugee experience at an all school assembly on April 30th, as well visit art and social studies classrooms throughout the day. See next week's newsletter for more information about Edel.

Edel will also be holding a community event the evening of April 30th at Eagle Harbor Bookstore. This is a free event and starts at 6:30pm (however I would get there a bit early). If you are interested in attending, you will need a reservation as it is sure to be filled to capacity. Please go to the Eagle Harbor Book Company website for more information.

We are so excited to celebrate the amazing Woodward staff who show up for our kids every single day! This year, we're bringing the Farmer's Market to Woodward from May 4-8th- think fresh, colorful, and full of good things, just like our incredible teachers and staff.

A full week of fun is planned, and it truly takes a village to pull it off. Every sign-up and donation goes directly toward making our staff feel seen, valued, and appreciated - and trust us, they are so worth it! Drop off & wishlist options available - click here to sign up!

Questions? Contact your PTO Volunteers:

Sarah Mann - sarahalida@hotmail.com &

Theresa Yette - teresa.yette@gmail.com

Dear 8th grade families, 

Save the Date (Saturday, May 30) for the 8th Grade Banquet! Ticket sales coming soon.

The deadline to submit photos has been extended to 4/27. You can submit photos via the photo upload link or by emailing Woodward.banquet.slideshow@gmail.com

 

If you know your student will not attend BISD in the fall, please let us know by contacting the school office, or by sending an email to: studentrecords@bisd303.org with your educational plan so that we may adjust our records accordingly.

 

Our Annual Back to school Check-in process (ABC) is now open and is available by logging in to your Family Access account. Look in the left menu and choose: ABC 26-27 to move through the steps to complete this process ASAP.

It should take about 15 minutes (or less!) to complete the process for each child in your household.

This data collection allows BISD to gather information regarding your students’ plans for the upcoming year. Having an accurate understanding of the number of expected students helps us determine staffing needs, class size and building capacity to better serve our students. In addition to this valuable information, it allows BISD to fulfill its annual notification requirements for public schools in Washington state.

The ABC 26-27 process must be completed for ALL students in the district whether they are brand new to the district or returning. If your student will be enrolled in Running Start, the process must be completed for them as well.

*NOTE: For students with more than one family, ONLY the Primary Family will have access to complete the ABC’s. Guardians of Non-Primary Families will have “read-only” access. If this is a hardship for your family, please contact the school office for guidance, or send an email to studentrecords@bisd303.org. All families have the ability to make changes to their specific demographic information at any time via Family Access>Student Info>Change Requests link (in the top right corner).

There is a possibility for a Woodward wrestling team next year that would be for students in 6th through 8th grade. This would be a co-ed team with the season running from the 3rd week of January to the 2nd week of March.

Right now we are assessing the interest level, so if you would like more information or you know that your student is interested in the opportunity, please email to Dan Pippinger, danpippinger@gmail.com, with your student's name and grade.

The next PTO meeting is:

April 22, 2026 - 6:00 pm, Conference Room

Online meeting: https://meet.google.com/rhc-poeu-zvn

Phone access: 1 262-682-3694‬ PIN: ‪337 801 443‬#‬‬‬‬‬‬‬‬‬‬‬‬‬‬‬‬‬‬‬‬

Be sure to follow the PTO Instagram for fun images and friendly reminders.

If you are looking to contribute to the school year, check out the WMS Wishlist!

From caffeine for staff to Health Room supplies, we'd love your help to restock some shelves with commonly used items.

Check out the Community Events Page for fun and engaging activities around the island!